Spurs 125, Washington 118 (2OT): Craziness in the nation’s capital

Because of the stakes, nothing in Spurs history will ever top Game 6 of last year’s Finals for gut-wrenching drama. But as far as regular-season games go, Wednesday’s game in Washington came about as close as possible. First down, then up, then tied after having apparently salted the game away, with first Tony Parker (injured) and then Tim Duncan (fouled out) watching on the sideline, the Spurs endured any number of roller coaster climbs and plunges.

They survived it all, including a Wizards team that had dusted Portland and Oklahoma City in its past two outings, to claim what Spurs coach Gregg Popovich rated as one of the best victories he’s ever been associated with. Considering he’s got 1,157 of them to his resume between the regular season and playoffs, including four title clinchers, that’s saying something. Even if he was succumbing to hyperbole while still hopped up on adrenaline, it was unquestionably a remarkable effort — one the Spurs almost had to have given their likely tank in Brooklyn tomorrow night.

Summing it up

Duncan certainly isn’t playing like a man who insists he doesn’t care about getting passed over for the All-Star Game. With 31 points, 11 rebounds, five assists, two steals and three blocked shots, he was the best player on the court in a game featuring two other All-Stars, Parker and Washington’s John Wall. In doing so, he joined Michael Jordan and Karl Malone as the only players 37 or older with at least 30 points, 10 rebounds and five assists over the past 25 years. Going even deeper, no player 37 or older has registered those thresholds according to the Basketball Reference data base, which dates back to the 1985-86 season.

There were almost too many to count. As many huge plays as it took down the stretch to win — Danny Green’s 3-pointer to make it 122-118; his poke-away on a Wall drive late in regulation; pretty much all of Patty Mills’ season-high 23 — the Spurs set the stage for victory with a strong third quarter. Down by as many as 17 in the first half, and 14 at the break, they outscored Washington 34-21 behind 14 from Duncan to get back within striking distance. It followed a miserable first half in which they turned the ball over 13 times as Washington shot nearly 60 percent.

News, notes and observation

* Popovich ruled out Parker for Thursday’s game in Brooklyn. There was no immediate word on Duncan, who logged a season-high 40 minutes before fouling out for just the 17th time of his career in the opening minute of overtime No. 2. Given Duncan’s age and Popovich’s history, it might be safe to assume the grand master will sit, depriving us of one last chance to see him match up with long-time adversary Kevin Garnett.

* Probably the single biggest factor in the Spurs’ comeback was their vastly improved ball protection after halftime. They committed 13 turnovers over the first two quarters, leading to the major deficit despite shooting nearly as well as the Wizards. They had just seven over the ensuing 34 minutes, with the first coming on an offensive foul early in the fourth quarter. Not surprisingly, they outscored the Wizards by 21 points in that span.

* With Parker out to deprive the Spurs of their three best perimeter players, the Spurs got a huge lift from the rest of the group. Green scored 21 points while soaking up 46 minutes. Mills set a season-high in points with four assists and six rebounds in just 20 minutes. Cory Joseph chipped in with eight points, four assists and three steals. Even barely-used Nando De Colo got in on the act, scoring eight points with three assists in just 17 minutes.

Green and Joseph played an integral role in limiting Wall after a white-hot start (14 points, 6-for-8 shooting) in the first quarter. The first-time All-Star finished with 29, but he missed 15 of his final 21 shots even after several defensive breakdowns out of timeouts gifted him with layups.

* Their perseverance notwithstanding, the Spurs’ late-game execution, at least in the first overtime, once again left plenty to be desired. They led by seven with 2:01 left, then six with 47 seconds left, and finally four with eight seconds left. But it wasn’t enough as Wall hit a pair of layups in the final six seconds, including a breakaway with little more than one tick remaining after he stole the inbound pass. Of course, much of that sloppiness can be attributed to the absences of Parker and Ginobili. But just a few moments of carelessness nearly undid their herculean effort.